Silver Moments
by SkyeRose
Summary: On a quiet planet, under two moons, Sam and Jack reflect on the course of their relationship and how quickly things can change. Short, sweet little story. Unabashed fluffy SamJack!


**Silver Moments**

**Disclaimer: Sadly, they are still not mine.**

**A/N: Just another quick little oneshot, highlighting the more sentimental and sweet side of Sam and Jack. Inspired after my first trip to the beach since I came home.**

**Brief references to "Beneath the Surface" (P3R-118) and "Upgrades/Divide and Conquer."**

**Enjoy!**

It was quiet on the beach, the dark waves lapping silently at the sand. The planet's double moons threw silver light onto the water, the reflections creating two paths that appeared to lead to the shore. But Sam knew better—it only appeared to move towards her in an elongated column because of the angle of her position to the water as well as the moons'. Even though it appeared to be, the light wasn't reaching for her at all.

She had volunteered for first watch, saying goodnight to each team member as they'd slowly trickled off to bed. Colonel O'Neill had been the last to leave, giving her a small smile over the fire as he stood and moved toward the tent. The flap had shut behind him and Sam felt equal parts relieved and sad. She sometimes felt this way late at night when no one else was awake, but lately it seemed to be happening more frequently.

As the night wore on and the tide began to come in, the moons moved closer together in their natural orbit. The two silver paths drew closer to each other every minute, but as beautiful as it was, Sam couldn't help but feel that it was mocking her. Two separate entities that travel through space together casting reflections on the water that grow closer and closer together…Sam smiled self-deprecatingly, shaking her head. Now she was comparing herself and the colonel to moons, for god's sake.

'_Get a grip, Sam.'_ She shifted her boots in the sand and readjusted her P-90 to rest against her chest more comfortably. She didn't bother checking her watch; she knew it'd only been a couple of hours since beginning the watch. She still had a few more to go.

She sat staring at the reflections, one part of her focusing on her surroundings and the other part letting her thoughts run wild. She'd always been dedicated to work—that's how she got to where she was at a relatively young age. And this program had been her career's, if not her life's, work. So why wasn't it enough? Why did she want something else—something more?

Why did she constantly feel that something was missing from her life—something vital. Her chin jerked towards the tent she shared with the colonel involuntarily and she squeezed her eyes shut, refocusing on her watch. And it was a good thing she had because a moment later a soft footfall landed behind her and she spun swiftly, raising her weapon.

"Easy, Carter. It's just me." Jack raised his hands out to his sides and cocked an eyebrow at her.

"Sorry, sir." Sam tried to smile, but weariness swept over her. She was just so _tired_.

"You okay?" He adjusted his black beanie to sit lower on his brow and plopped himself into the sand next to Sam. He was careful to keep a respectable distance between them, hating himself a little bit for doing it.

"Yes, sir. Just…thinking." Sam turned her gaze back to the water, choosing to ignore the distance she knew he had deliberately put between them.

"You wouldn't be Carter if you weren't." But his joking tone fell flat. They sat in silence for several minutes watching the waves pull and push the glittering sand. "Wanna get some rest? I'll take the rest of your watch."

Sam forced herself to smile at him, not quite meeting his eyes. "I'm fine, sir."

Jack just nodded, turning to face the ocean again. It was a quiet planet, initial telemetry showed no indication of hostile life, but you could never be sure. Still, he was confident there would be no serious incidents tonight. Maybe that was why his guard was down. Maybe that was what made him think it was okay to look at his 2IC—to really look at her.

Her eyes were illuminated by the moonlight, but their usual glint was dulled, there were dark circles under her eyes, and her mouth was drawn taut. She looked miserable, knees drawn close to her chest and hands lying still in the sand.

He sighed, quietly. "What happened?" He directed his question at the water, but felt Sam shift next to him.

"Colonel?" She didn't look at him. In fact, he couldn't remember the last time she had really looked at him.

"This, Carter. It's like we're strangers." Jack kept his eyes on the moons' reflections, unwilling to let her see the emotions running rampant on his face.

Sam didn't say anything for a long time. He was right, of course. The last several weeks had been different. They'd barely spoken to one another and had acknowledged each other even less frequently. There was a time when Sam would bet she knew the colonel as well as she knew herself—a time when all they had to do was make eye contact and a whole conversation could be had. Where had that gone?

"I know." She didn't bother tacking on his rank, this wasn't a conversation for two military personnel.

Jack sighed, still watching the water. The two columns of silver water were so close they were almost touching. Jack looked down at his feet and saw the shaft of silver light brushing the tops of his boots. He looked up sharply. Moonlight didn't do that anywhere except on the water. How was it reaching up the shore?

He glanced to his left at where Carter was studiously looking away from him. She didn't notice the light that was also reaching towards her. He thought about moving them up a few feet, away from the light…but light couldn't hurt them right? It was just a trick of this planet's moons. Still…

"Carter."

"It's not anything dangerous." She said as though reading his mind. "It's just the moon's refraction through the planet's atmosphere."

"Right." The two columns were nearly one. "Carter-,"

"Sir." She spoke quickly, intentionally cutting him off. "Don't."

Jack raised an eyebrow, but continued anyway. "Carter, I don't like this. I don't like how we've been."

Sam sighed, pressing her hand into the sand. "I don't either, but I don't think…" She took a deep breath. "I don't think it can be helped."

"Sam." He was on thin ice, but he no longer cared. "Look at me." He waited a moment and when she hesitated he lightly touched her hand. "Please."

Sam squeezed her eyes shut, then opened them, turning their full force on the colonel. "P3R-118."

"What?"

"P3R-118. That's where this started." She wanted to look away, but she couldn't. She needed to see his reaction.

Jack held her gaze a moment longer, then turned back to the silver water. "Ah." She was right. Everything had changed after that. "To tell you the truth, Carter, things changed before that too."

"The armbands." Sam nodded.

"That too. I was going back a little further." Jack gave her a sad smile.

"Ah." Sam watched him watch her. It was a surreal feeling, sitting on a beach with the man she loved—the man she couldn't have- thousands of lightyears from home, watching two moons converge into one. Who would know if anything happened? _'The moons certainly won't tell anybody._' The sudden and unexpected thought made her laugh. A short giggle, but it was enough.

Jack grinned back at her and suddenly they were both laughing. They tried to stay quiet so as not to wake Daniel and Teal'c, but Sam's sides were hurting with the effort. No longer caring who saw, Sam fell backwards onto the sand- it was still warm even though the sun hadn't been up for hours. Jack collapsed next to her, struggling to catch his breath.

"You know," Jack said, staring up at the stars, still grinning. "You just might be my favorite."

Sam turned her head to look at him, her face just inches from his. "And you might just be mine."

Jack turned his head to meet her eyes. She had never looked more beautiful. The familiar spark was back in her eyes and her hair was gilded with silver light from the moon. His hand closed around hers and she gently squeezed his in response.

This was one of those moments—one of those absolutely perfect moments that everyone spends their whole lives searching for. It didn't matter that the Goa'uld were still out there, it didn't matter that there were regulations to prevent just this from happening…the only thing that mattered in this moment was them.

Overhead, the two moons converged, their light creating one shining column on the colonel and his major, who looked like there was no place in the universe they'd rather be.

**END**

**A/N: A little more sentimental than what I usually have, but it wanted to be written. Please R and R!**


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